


Love and Family (out of order)

by AvocadoLove



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alpha Tony Stark, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Forced Pregnancy, M/M, Mating Bond, Mpreg, Omega Bucky Barnes, Omega Verse, Pregnancy, Protective Tony Stark, Protectiveness, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-31
Updated: 2016-05-31
Packaged: 2018-07-11 10:51:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7046131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvocadoLove/pseuds/AvocadoLove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Steve brings Bucky home shortly after the fall of SHIELD, it's obvious he's keeping a few secrets to himself. Tony knows the truth because he can smell it: Bucky's pregnant, and the baby is Tony's. Except, that shouldn't be possible. Tony has never met Bucky Barnes—or the Winter Soldier—before.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Love and Family (out of order)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Potrix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Potrix/gifts).



> Written for the WinterIron Spring Fling as a gift for Potrix. Thank you for the great prompt.
> 
>  
> 
> Also, mild warning for **implied non-consensual medical procedure** resulting in pregnancy.

 

"It's a trap," Tony said, deliberately putting a campy rasp into his voice.

Natasha gave him a sidelong look. "Star Wars?"

"Return of the Jedi. Still.” He shrugged and fiddled with the settings on his smart phone until it showed him a live feed of the living room.  “An internationally wanted assassin doesn't just waltz into the Avengers headquarters without an ulterior motive. You’re a spy. It's your job to be suspicious of these things."

"Barnes was Steve’s best friend," Natasha said, arms crossed. But something in her tone made Tony think she was only playing Devil's Advocate. She didn't disagree.

" _Barnes_ died over seventy years ago. The Winter Soldier has been under HYDRA's tender care for longer than we've both been alive. Nope," he said, popping the 'p'. "He's using Steve as an in."

She raised a fine eyebrow. "So what's your play?"

He raised his hand to show a watch. They both knew it was more than meets the eye. "You know me. I'm a master of improvisation. You?"

She hesitated then rolled back one sleeve on her stylish leather jacket to reveal a concealed widows bite.

Tony felt himself smile. "You're my favorite former assistant."

"Don't let Pepper hear you say that." She turned and pressed the elevator button for the top floor. FRIDAY had helpfully held the elevator at Tony's request so they could have this little chat. "Steve won't let himself be separated from Barnes."

"So distract him," Tony said. "You're good at good cop. I'll come in with my flair and pizazz and insist on a scan of the arm, at the very least. FRIDAY will monitor Barnes’ every move. The second he nudges a toe out of line, we'll know."

The elevator doors opened before she could reply. Thor was off duty, wooing Jane Foster in Maui. Due to the high emotional tension and probability of violence. Bruce had opted to sit this one out in his lab. Tony knew he could call him in for a code-green, though, if he needed.

Steve, Sam Wilson, and the man that must be the former James "Bucky" Barnes stood in a triangle in the center of the common room. They turned as the elevator opened, and the first thing Tony noticed was that the Winter Soldier was even better looking in person than the old black and white's suggested, greasy hair and grizzled expression aside.

The second thing was that _someone_ was pregnant. Really, really pregnant.

The scent of gravid Omega lay heavy in the room. It was a... warm scent, pleasant and thick. Instinctively, Tony inhaled a sip of air and pressed his tongue to the top of his mouth, pressing the flavor of the scent to special Alpha glands. It tasted like home.

"—and he needs our help," Steve said. He had been speaking for several seconds, maybe making introductions. Tony couldn't remember a word of it.

He blinked, realizing Natasha was staring at him, probably waiting for Tony to pull up some patented Stark snark. Make an uncomfortably pointed comment or three to put everyone's back up, then let her swoop in with a more measured comment. Something that would sound reasonable in comparison.

The Winter Soldier was staring fixedly down at the floor. Steve said something else, emphasizing Barnes being a good man, that he'd personally vouch for him, that...

That...

"How far along are you?" Tony blurted to the Soldier.

Everyone stared at him as if he were insane. The Winter Soldier raised his gaze from the floor to look at Tony. His eyes were steel gray.

Say what he would about Steve, but he wasn't slow on the uptake. He turned to the Soldier. "Bucky?" he asked, shocked.

"You can't smell it?" Tony demanded. So much for super soldier senses. It was _all_ he could scent.

"Three months." The voice came as a ragged whisper, and the Soldier again turned his eyes to the ground. Ashamed. His hands were stuffed into the front pocket of his hoodie—No. His hands were covering his middle. "I've come for protection."

A… feeling rolled through Tony. Indefinable, but strong.

"Bucky..." Steve put a hand on the Omega's shoulder. "Of course we'll--"

Tony knocked the hand away.

He wasn't aware he'd crossed the room until he found himself between Steve and the Omega. "Hands to yourself, Cap," Tony said, his smile showing teeth.

The other Alpha's eyes flashed. He squared his shoulders. "What's the big idea, Stark?"

"Whoa," Sam Wilson said, coming between them. He was a beta, so Tony allowed it, though he couldn't quite keep the bubbling growl out of his throat. It rose completely unbidden. Steve was taller and stronger than himself, but he wasn't coming one step closer.

Sam's eyes flicked to Tony, then Bucky, and back again. "What's going on here?"

"I'm pregnant," the Omega said blankly. "Tony Stark is the father."

"What?" Steve said.

"What," Tony said.

 

****

 

Shock sometimes was enough to snap an Alpha out of the Red Zone. Tony hadn't quite been there yet, but it was as close as he'd ever come – which should have been impossible by itself. Only Alphas in a mating bond became all caveman-protective over their mates.

Still, the surprise was like a splash of cold water to his face.

Some part of him knew, logically, that this was a trick. He'd never met James Barnes – The Winter Soldier, _whatever_ \-- much less knotted him during a heat. He couldn’t be pregnant with Tony's child.

But he also _knew_ Steve and Barnes had been in a battle royale on top of a crashing helicarrier not two weeks ago. And Barnes was carrying what his Alpha senses screamed was a _very_ precious package.

Steve was going to get within arm’s reach of this Omega over Tony's dead body.

Luckily, Sam, ever the peacemaker, settled Steve and Natasha on one side of the large living room, Tony and Barnes on the other. Only once Steve was safely away was Tony able to relax.

He turned to Barnes and said, "You and I have never met, and my swimmers are dead. So, Lucy, you've got some ‘splaining to do."

Steve made a spluttering sound.

"Lucy?" Bucky asked.

Natasha said, "The Palladium poisoning?"

"It was a side effect." Tony waved it away as if his sterility had never bothered him. He was fortunate enough to survive heavy metal poisoning at all, or so he'd told himself. He turned to Barnes. "And ‘I Love Lucy’ was an old TV show. Not as old as you and Cap, though.”

"I hope you understand," Sam said carefully. "We'll need to verify your story. It's a simple test."

The Omega jerked as if he'd been slapped. His head shot up and he lifted a lip in a snarl. The blankness was gone from his eyes. He looked fierce. Magnificent.  "No. No more tests." One hand drifted down to his side where he was probably concealing a weapon.

A distant part of Tony thought he should be more alarmed about that than he actually was. Especially since he was sitting _next_ to the startled Omega.

"Buck," Steve said, leaning forward earnestly, "they've got medical ways to check the health of the baby. It's non-invasive. Hand to God, no one here wants to hurt you."

If anything, the Omega’s sneer only deepened. "No one's coming near me with tests or injections again. You get me?"

It was the most he'd spoken so far, and Tony could hear the edges of a Brooklyn accent crawling through his words. For the first time he thought they might be dealing with more James Barnes than the Winter Soldier.

"The man said no tests," Tony said. "So he gets no tests. But don't think I noticed we've skipped over some very important questions." Turning to the Omega, he snapped his fingers and kept it short. It helped if he breathed through his mouth. "You. Me. Pregnant. How?"

The Omega visibly hesitated, then looked down as if ashamed of Tony's gaze, which was ridiculous because he could snap Tony in two.

 From the other side of the room, Steve made an irritated sound.  "Stark—"

"Insight," the Omega said. And again, the blankness was back. He was Winter Soldier-ing again. "HYDRA was on the edge of total success. The first algorithms had scanned and identified over a million targets on the Eastern Seaboard alone. This generation's greatest minds."

"I was one of them," Tony said. Naturally he'd be on any list of greatest minds.

The Omega nodded once. "Your genius has proven to be hereditary. Howard Stark was also clever. He--" The Omega stopped, blinked as if thrown off track and lost in his own mind. He didn't go on.

But Tony could put together the pieces. "HYDRA introduced a breeding program."

"Yes."

Tony leaned forward, pressing his palms briefly over his eyes, feeling sick. If his instincts weren't screaming to protect this Omega carrying his child, he'd be out of this room and into his Iron Man armor right now. He needed to blow something up. There had to be a HYDRA base _somewhere_.

Natasha, blunt as ever, asked, "How did they get a sample of Stark’s semen?"

Again, Steve made a vaguely distressed sound.

"The usual way," Tony said with a halfhearted leer. "It's probably old, from when I was in my prime. I was fairly easy in MIT. A pretty Omega or Beta comes on to me, hailing HYDRA on the down-low. Then they have frozen genetic copies of 'Stark genius' whenever they want." He turned to Barnes. "Are there any others, or were you the first?"

"I don't know."

"Wonderful. This day is going so well."

"It's not his fault," Steve said sharply. "Bucky, none of this is your fault."

Tony's temper flared. "Did I say that? Look," he said to the Omega. "I'm sure you're a great guy under the HYDRA programming, but I don't actually expect you to go through with this. Just say the word. There's no tests, no mess. It's just a pill and maybe a day or two of cramping."

The Omega -- he needed to stop thinking of him as just that -- _Barnes_ didn't say anything. He looked down again, his hair falling in front of his eyes. His metal hand pressed over his still flat belly.

Tony swallowed, throat feeling dry. "But if you want to keep it, you'll have my complete support. HYDRA will have to go through Stark Industries, the Avengers, and _my dead body_ to get to you. You won't want for anything. No one is touching you like that, ever again." His voice took on a growl at the end.

"I can't..." Barnes shook his head. "I can't protect her by myself."

Her? Some Omegas said they knew the sex of the child early on, but Tony figured it was a decent 50/50 shot at being right.

"You're in the safest place in the world," Tony swore.

Barnes nodded. "I'll stay."

_And I_ , Tony thought, _will protect him._

 

****

 

It took a few minutes for Sam to convince Tony to let him take Barnes to one of the spare guest rooms. Tony agreed only because Sam was a Beta, and safe. It helped that Steve volunteered to come along with Tony.

He was two floors away before he could breathe air not scented by pregnant Omega.

Letting out a groan, Tony rested against the nearest wall.

Natasha’s voice dripped with fake sweetness.  “Thinking clearer?”

“Tell me that was some kind of fever dream,” Tony half-begged. “Tell me I wasn’t ready to rip Steve limb-from-limb.”

“That’s some dream,” Steve muttered, crossing his arms. But he was looking down.

Natasha’s eyebrows rose. “Alphas can have strong reactions around pregnant Omegas.”

“Mated Alphas,” Tony said. “I’ve never met the man in my life.”

Steve cut in, looking miserable. “Tony, if I had any idea he was pregnant when we were fighting on the helicarrier, any at all—“

“You’d, what? Let HYDRA go through with it?” He waved a hand. “Then the kid would be growing up without an Alpha-father, wouldn’t it?” His heart did a funny little catch at that. Him. Alpha-father.

He ruthlessly shoved it away.

Steve’s guilt wouldn’t be assuaged that easily. “Bucky didn’t tell me, but I should have—”

“It’s my fault,” Tony said. “Considering what HYDRA does, we all should have suspected they’d try a breeding program.” For a moment, things seemed to haze red in his vision. Just the thought of Bucky in heat and attended to by uncaring scientists—

Stopping that line of thought, Tony took a deep, calming breath. “It’s not your fault, Cap. Not anyone’s fault.”

And whaddya know? He almost believed it, himself.

 

 

****

 

 

For the next nine days, Tony did a wonderful job of avoiding their newest guest. It was easy to reroute the air-conditioning and allergy purification system to blow fresh air from the outside directly into his workshop. Nothing Omega tainted would go in or out.

And he kept an eye on Barnes.

Now he wasn’t whammied, he remembered the man wasn’t a helpless Omega. He was a highly skilled assassin. (But he’d said he needed Tony’s help, a tiny voice reminded him about every other minute).

Mostly, though, Barnes stayed in his private rooms -- one of which, Tony had FRIDAY assign as a nursery. It was best to be prepared. 

Steve had tried once more to convince him to see a doctor. Again, it was declined. But he was behaving himself, according to FRIDAY. He ate, went to the in-house gym, and even took his pre-natal vitamins on time.

“Sir,” FRIDAY said on the evening of Tony’s tenth day of isolation. “Sergeant Barnes is requesting permission to access the workshop.”

He glanced up from his current project to see the cameras pointed to the outside hallway. Sure enough, Barnes stood dressed in a hoody and track pants. He had shaved the scruff off his jaw, and had tied his shoulder length hair back. It was a good look.

Tony considered addressing him using the intercom, but that smacked of cowardness. He wasn’t afraid of him. It wasn’t as if Tony thought of him every other minute. Nope. No siree.

He swallowed hard. “Sure, why not?”

Bucky walked in and glanced around the workshop. Some people were dazzled (and rightfully so) at the holodesks, the bots, the gadgets which were four or five generations ahead of the market.

The Omega’s eyes showed none of that. He just looked tired.

Part of Tony wanted to walk over and make it right. Instead, Tony forced himself to keep back. “Want the nickel tour?”

Bucky looked at him as if he were weighing something in his mind. Then he said, “Another delivery truck showed up today, full to the top. Third one this week.”

“Amazon prime,” Tony replied. “It’s a modern marvel. You’ll learn to love it.”

His jaw worked. Huh. He did that same molar-clenchy thing as Cap when he was annoyed. “The room you set aside—the nursery. It’s full to the top with all the boxes.”

“So, unpack them? They're for you. For her." An idea struck him. "Strike that, I'll could pay someone to do that. Interns love playing with bubble-wrap… why are you giving me that look. What is the problem here? Companies over pack everything, especially baby supplies. There’s really not that much—“

“Not that much?” he repeated, making a sound that was almost a laugh. “Stark, you know my parents made do with a lot less for my sisters and me. They turned out just fine.”

So he did have memories from the past. Tony hadn’t been sure. He also noticed that Bucky didn’t include himself in the ‘just fine’ category. Telling.

“And I have the money, and the means to spend it,” he answered briskly. “Let me feather the nest, would you?” He hadn’t meant it to come out quite like that. It was an Alpha’s job to prepare a home for his or her offspring, and until he’d spoken the words he hadn’t quite realized what he was doing.

But it was too late to take it back, and even if he could, Tony didn’t think he would.

Bucky hesitated, glancing down at the floor before his eyes lifted to Tony’s gaze. “Fine. Thank you. I guess."

Tony’s mouth went dry. “Whatever you need,” he said. “Name it. It’s yours.”

He looked down again.  “Protection. That’s it. I don’t need ‘smart baby bottles’. I just need a place to lay low for awhile.”

Tony found himself wavering towards him, as if Bucky were a magnet and he a metal filing. Every breath he took was filled with their mingled scents. It calmed something deep in his mind and woke something so primal he wasn’t sure he had a word for it.

But above else, Tony was a man of logic. His Alpha hind-brain may be stirring, but the rest of him was curious. “You’ve mentioned that before,” he said softly, “and take this for the compliment it is: you look like someone who can handle himself. Why do you need protection? Why now?”

Bucky didn’t answer for a long moment. Then he said low, ashamed, “Did you think this is the first time I’ve escaped HYDRA?” 

Once again, Tony found himself somewhere before he’d even decided to move. He’d closed the distance between them, fingers wrapped around Bucky’s forearms – both the metal and the flesh. He wasn’t fully aware why he was doing it, just that he had to touch him. Hold him in some way. Be the anchor Bucky needed him to be.

Bucky didn’t seem to take offense. He let out a long breath, almost a sigh, and swayed towards Tony. Just a little. His eyes slipped shut as if he were taking strength from Tony’s touch.

Taking solace from his Alpha.

_Shit_ , Tony thought distantly. _He shouldn’t be doing this. I shouldn’t be doing this. We’re not bonded. We’ve barely even met._

But wild horses couldn’t drag him away. Bucky, too, didn’t move. As Tony watched, the tightness in his shoulders eased.

And even though they were not, _could not_ , be bonded, Tony was made aware of something.

“You’re planning to leave her,” he said, thickly. “After the baby’s born. You’re dumping her on me, then running.”

Bucky didn’t deny it. His head bowed and his flesh hand covered his still flat stomach. “Yes.”

“Don’t,” he said shortly.

“She’s not safe. Not as long as I’m around.”

“Bucky—“

“No.” His head snapped up, and as quick as that the spell between them was broken. Bucky easily shrugged out of Tony’s grasp.

His gray-blue eyes were so full of horrors, Tony couldn’t speak.

“She needs someone to protect her,” Bucky said. “I’m not that person. You asked me what I needed. There’s your answer. Take care of our child.”

With that, Bucky turned and strode out.

 

 

****

 

 

The next few weeks were a dance of sorts where he and the Omega did everything possible to avoid one another.

Tony delved into research on spontaneous Alpha/Omega mate-bonding, and was relieved to find 1) it was incredibly rare and 2) happened after the Alpha and Omega had already been in contact for a very long time.

It was possible (though vanishingly rare) to bond without heat-sex, but never to an almost stranger.

WebMD suggested Tony's Alpha hormones had been thrown into overdrive after scenting an Omega carrying his child. It also suggested it could be a type of pituitary gland cancer, but... well, that's what Tony got for searching WebMD.

Tony forced himself out of his workshop on a more regular basis. It was important, he thought, that the others don't see him hiding (that they see him strong and able to protect what was his).

He and the Omega -- _Bucky_ , he had to think of him as Bucky -- didn't speak alone that often. It was fine. His scent was everywhere in the building, and he seemed healthy enough. FRIDAY said he was still eating and sleeping regularly.

They were not bonded. They did not have to be friends.

(He might have hated Steve a little the time he caught him making Bucky smile, and the time Natasha bumped shoulders with the Omega in a friendly sort of way, over dinner. But Tony knew these feelings weren't justified. He wasn’t red-zoning. He could control himself. Besides, FRIDAY had reported Steve had never made a pass at Bucky. When they interacted, it was as brothers... not that Tony had his AI spy for him. Much.... Okay, yes, it _was_ creepy, and he'd locked himself out of that subroutine after the second time he'd activated it.)

In his spare downtime, Tony researched non-lethal weapons. Something that could be fired at oncoming enemies without also endangering the pregnant Omega in the room. Or a baby.

Because the most shocking thing of all -- the thing that sometimes woke Tony in the middle of the night, heart racing and stomach threatening to leap out of his throat, was that he was going to be a father.

A single father, if Bucky had his way.

The idea of him, Tony Stark, being wholly in charge of a new life was… too big. There were some things even a genius had trouble wrapping his head around, and that was one. So, aside from making Amazon’s Baby Department sales surge, he tried not to think about it.

(Oh God. Baby classes. He should be taking baby classes. Or something. Could one webinar those? He’d ask FRIDAY to look into it.)

It was the morning after one panicky when Tony meandered his way down to the team's gym. Contrary to popular belief he did work out. Sometimes. He had to keep up with younger members of the team somehow.

He heard the treadmills as soon as the elevator dinged open. Somehow, Tony had forgotten that Bucky and Steve usually went on a morning run together.

Side-by-side, both were running flat out, the track of the treadmills practically screaming in protest. For all that, neither seemed winded in the slightest. Every step was easy, and Tony couldn't hear heavy breathing.

Steve must have given Bucky a few tips about tight shirts because his gym clothes stretched obscenely over his flared shoulders, and the curve of his metal arm.

His stomach had a definite roundness. Too firm to be fat, and his skin was flushed and glowing in a way Tony hadn't remembered seeing before.

He didn't know how long he stood there, watching. Steve was the first to glance over.

"Tony," he called with a nod, as easy as if he were on a stroll and not practically making the treadmill smoke. "Are we hogging the equipment?"

Bucky glanced over, caught Tony’s eyes, then looked away.

"No. I’m not here to interrupt the morning marathon. Just keep... doing what you're doing." Tony hooked a thumb over his shoulder to the pool. "I'll be over there. So..." For once, he found he didn't have much to add.

He stripped down to his swim trunks and started laps. It had been a habit he'd fallen into after Afghanistan. He'd had a... thing, about water. Learning to conquer it had been like taking part of his life back.

He didn't let himself glance again to the treadmills, and was surprised twenty minutes later by a splash as someone entered the pool. Tony drew up short, treading water.

Bucky bobbed back up to the surface, wearing swim trunks and looking like he was ready for a few laps of his own. Steve, Tony saw, was heading out, a towel over his shoulder, purposefully not looking back. He was leaving Tony to the wolves.

"Your arm's waterproof?" Tony asked.

"Sure," Bucky said, drifting casually over to the deeper end where Tony was. "It's just a bunch of gears and bolts. A little water won’t hurt."

Tony opened his mouth, offended on behalf of all electronic equipment. He hadn’t gotten ahold of it, but that cybernetic arm was clearly a masterpiece. Then he caught the slight smile on Bucky's lips. The man was jerking his chain

"Soviet made," Tony sniffed.

He lifted his metal hand out of the water, watching the droplets fall back down. "It hasn't rusted yet. That why you paint Iron Man such fancy colors?"

"That and to keep the ice off."

Again, Tony found himself drifting closer to the Omega, as if he were somehow pulling him in.

An insane thought struck him, but Tony had never been one to be shy. "Can I?" he asked, nodding downward, his chin brushing the surface of the water.

For a moment, Bucky looked at him blankly. Then he seemed to understand. "She's not old enough to start kicking. I've googled fetus development--"

"You googled it?" he repeated. It had taken months to get Steve to abandon pencil and paper. He still let others use the computer for him  when there was something serious to be done.

The look Bucky gave was sardonic. "The internet’s a modern-day library, Stark. And I don't see baby-books laying around."

_Baby books._ Tony mentally added that to the list of things to purchase. Meanwhile, Tony let himself drift a little closer. Almost within arm's reach of the Omega. "Maybe she'll know her daddy."

Bucky lifted his chin and for a moment it looked like he was going to refuse. Then he lifted one shoulder in a shrug, backing up so that he could rest against the side of the pool. "Knock yourself out."

Tony kicked closer, and put one steadying hand on the side of the pool. Carefully, watching Bucky's face for a flinch, he rested the flat of his hand against the slight swell on his lower stomach.

As Bucky said, there was no movement. Still, Tony didn't pull his hand away. "Hello," he said quietly.

"A little young to answer you, too."

"Starks grow up fast," he said, then glanced at Bucky to see if he'd taken offense. After all, he'd never had any say in this. But he only gazed back steadily, his blue eyes tracing over Tony's face. What he was searching for, Tony couldn't say.

The last time they spoke of this, it hadn't gone well, but Tony wasn't going to let it drop. "It's a dangerous world," Tony said, testing the waters, as it were. "I think you know that better than anyone. She's going to need all the help she can get."

Bucky let out a sigh and tipped his head backwards. Tony's eyes fell to the long lines of his throat, bare of mark. If they were a properly mated pair -- a normal pair -- Bucky would have his mark. His skin was clean and new as a virgin's -- the serum, no doubt.

"She doesn't need the likes of me," Bucky muttered.

"Because you were the Winter Soldier?"

Bucky didn't reply, but he shifted uncomfortably. Tony sensed in a moment he was going to wiggle free, maybe haul himself out of the water, and then they'd do this stupid dance of avoidance again for another few weeks.

"It would... I would feel a lot better if I knew she was healthy," Tony found himself blurting. "You want me to raise her? Fine. My alpha father made every mistake in the book, so I'll just do the opposite and maybe she'll have a chance at turning out okay. But I want to give her the best shot from the start. Don't you?"

His eyes flashed. "What does that mean?"

Tony's hand was still protectively over Bucky's stomach. He removed it, not wanting the Omega to feel trapped. "Medicine's come a long way from your day. If there was an issue -- if she had a weak heart, for example, we could bolster her with medicine. There are procedures in-vitro. If she's healthy -- even better. One weight off my shoulders. Yours too, right?"

Bucky's lips twisted, and Tony thought he caught a flash of guilt there. "'Course."

"Look," Tony said, deciding not to beat around the bush, "this wasn't a natural pregnancy. It's probably considered high risk at best. But if you got examined… I will be with you every step of the way. Bruce will explain everything he's doing, and if you say stop we'll stop. Google ‘ultrasound’ if you want. It's painless and completely safe for the both of you." He made a stab in the dark and added, “No restraints.”

That must have been a bridge too far. With a swift, easy movement, Bucky turned and hauled himself out of the water.

"I'll think about it," he said sullenly, and left, dripping, to a stack of towels.

Still treading water, Tony watched him. Only later did he realize the smell of chlorinated water had completely obscured pregnant Omega. Yet he still felt as drawn to Bucky as before, the desire to protect what was his as strong as ever.

Well. Fuck.

 

****

 

 

Two days later, FRIDAY relayed a message from Bucky to Tony.

"Boss, Mr. Barnes told me to tell you that he'll go through with your tests. For her."

For her. Tony closed his eyes in relief, then went to go find Bruce. He was going to be annoyed they were using him as their own personal doctor again.

 

 

****

 

 

Tony expected one of those moment's he'd seen again and again on TV. Where the doctor points to a blob on an ultrasound and says, "There's your baby," and at that moment the magnitude of being a family hits both parents. There's tears and love.

Reality didn’t work like that.

Bucky twitched dangerously at the cold gel, and the ultrasound machine (ancient, by Tony's standards, but it was the only thing he could arrange to borrow from a local college on short term notice. His workshop is advanced in almost every way, but he's no medical doctor.) clicks and whirrs, dust motes floating off it and in the air.

It's hard to tell one blob from the other on the grainy screen. Bruce points out a rapidly fluttering something he says is a heartbeat.

"I assisted with some pregnancies in Calcutta, but I'm not an expert," Bruce said, pushing his glasses up his nose. "I don't see any obvious abnormalities. I'd like to send pictures away to experts, if I can."

"Under an anonymous name," Tony said.

"Of course."

Bucky had not spoken a word. He stared up at the screen with a glassy gaze, almost completely removed. His flesh hand, however, found Tony's and held it. Tony looked down at their joined hands, and _there_ it is. A glimmer of that momentous feeling he'd been waiting for.

Tony waited a beat and said, "You good, Bucky?"

Bucky blinked as if coming back into himself. "Whattya mean?" he husked, then, "That's all?"

"Blood draw and ultrasound." Tony nodded at Bruce who lifted the sensor from Bucky's belly. Grabbing a hand towel, Tony wiped some of the gook away. "That's all we can do at this point. It'll tell us everything we need."

"She's healthy," Bucky said. "I know it."

Tony found himself smiling. "Are you so sure she's a she?" He looked at Bruce.

Bruce shrugged, but with a gentle smile replied, "Again, I’m no expert, but I didn't see any obvious male genitalia."

"She's fine," Bucky repeated stiffly. “Are you happy now?”

“Extremely,” Tony said, "What's with the sour face?"

Releasing Tony's hand, Bucky sat up and pulled on his shirt. Then he left the room, not looking back.

Tony watched after him for a long minute. Bruce cleared his throat. "It's a step forward that he came here at all. He must trust you."

Tony didn't know about that, but fake smiles came easily to him. Years of practice. "Thanks for the help, Big Green. Let me know when those test results come back."

He left the room.

 

 

****

 

 

Three days later, Bucky was again requesting entry at Tony's workshop.

Tony opened the door himself and took a moment to look Bucky up and down. "FRIDAY," he said, "new protocol. Bucky Barnes now has open access to the workshop."

"Right on it, Boss," FRIDAY chirped.

“I’m big on saving time,” Tony said, stepping aside to let him in.

Bucky didn't answer and didn’t immediately move to come in. The acid tang of anxiety mixed with the warm, alluring scent of pregnant Omega. Bucky's metal hand laid on his stomach. He lifted his chin as if facing down a firing squad. "Do you have a gadget in there to block sounds?"

"Like a... white noise machine? Having trouble sleeping?" Tony asked, but even as he said it he knew that wasn't the case.

Bucky was too grim, too scared and determined. And the fact that Tony could read that all plain as day on his face wasn't something he wanted to think hard about.

Bucky's chin trembled. "To block spoken commands."

His answer was vague, but understanding lit through Tony all at once. He motioned for Bucky to come inside. This time Bucky followed. The door closed behind them, ensuring privacy.

"You have triggers to activate the Winter Soldier," Tony said. It wasn't a question.

Bucky replied anyway. "Yes."

"That's why you want to leave the baby with me, after she's born."

"I'm not safe. After I'm activated, they say jump, and I don't question how high. I'll do whatever they want. Give her to them, dash her head in--" Bucky stopped with a quick inhale, his hand tight around his middle. His eyelashes were clumpy, like he'd been crying, but his cheeks were dry. He stared at Tony in challenge. "Do you have something or not, Stark?"

"Not," he admitted, then held up a hand to forestall him. "But creating is my business. Have a seat. I won't bite."

Bucky hesitated, then sat. He let his eyes roam around the room.

He looked good, sitting among his things, Tony thought.

"I don't suppose you'd tell me what these trigger words are. No?" he answered as Bucky's glare turned venomous. Well, there went Bruce's theory about trust. With a swipe, Tony cleared his holodesk and brought up a blank file for a new project. "What brought on this burst of truth?"

Bucky was silent for a long time. He looked down at the ground. "'S'not so easy to leave," he finally said. "I didn't think it would be, but as time passes..."

"You'd be a fool to leave her alone with me," Tony said. "And you're no fool, Barnes."

Bucky looked up at him sharply. "You're sayin' that because of Howard?"

It occurred to Tony that he might not be the only one who received inconvenient truths from their not!bond. That didn't mean he was up to share. "As I said, you're no fool."

Thankfully, Bucky didn't ask for further explanations. He sat, watchful, as Tony started to draft initial ideas.

"That's not why," Bucky said, a long time after. "She'll love you."  There was such wistfulness in his tone that Tony looked up. Their gazes met and something warm passed between them.

This was dangerous ground. Tony quickly bent back to his work, and thankfully Bucky didn't bring it up again.

 

 

****

 

 

It took Tony three days, once he nailed down the concept.

He had to make two of the tiny devices, of course. One for each ear. The antenna was filament thin, long enough to stretch the length of Bucky's ear canal. It ended in the machine the size of a ball bearing. Tony would have liked to make it smaller -- this would cause some irritation even though he modeled it after cochlear implants, but as a temporary solution it was good enough.

After some prodding, Bucky admitted that the trigger was a string of ten random words. Made sense. HYDRA didn't need their puppet set wild after hearing a random conversation.

Bucky refused to share what those words were, of course, so Tony sent him with the ear-pieces in hand to the workshop's bathroom. "Pinch down hard on each side," he said, demonstrating, "and speak the first five or so words. The micro-recorder will remember."

"What happens after?" Bucky asked.

"We'll insert one in each ear -- won't be visible from the outside. Only you and I will know. Then, if the antenna ever picks up the phrases," he shrugged. "It'll emit a high frequency only you can hear. Purposeful tinnitus. You know that high pitched ringing you get after a loud noise? It'll essentially make you deaf until I can get them turned off again."

Bucky stared at the two ball-bearing sized devices in the palm of his hand, then silently went to the bathroom to make his recording.

He returned a bit blurry eyed -- as if saying just those five phrases had triggered a little something in him.

Tony was utterly unprepared when, on returning, Bucky pulled him into a rough kiss.

It was as if something lit up inside Tony. The feel of his lips against his, the hint of his breath, the mix of their scents was completely right.

"Thank you," Bucky breathed.

He hadn't pulled away, but Tony clutched him close. “I told you,” he said. “Whatever you need.”

"I don't deserve it."

"Yes," Tony said. "You do."

Bucky looked at him for a long moment. He smiled softly, kissed Tony again, briefly, then turned as if to go.

"You don't have to go," Tony said, meaning so many things.

Turning, Bucky raised an eyebrow. "I have a nursery to put together, Tony. And a thousand boxes of baby crap to unpack."

Did that mean he meant to stay? Tony didn't dare to hope.

 

 

****

 

 

Later, Tony would admit to himself that he and the other Avengers had been in serious denial. They'd been arrogant.

Bucky had come to them out of the cold, seeking their protection. As Tony had said, he was fully capable of defending himself. He had been the Winter Soldier. A living legend. And he'd been afraid to the depth of his core of HYDRA recapturing him and his child.

Even with that, no one truly believed HYDRA would attack.

They did it while most of the team were out on another call.

Tony usually didn't go out unless they needed the big guns, or there was an indication of advanced technology. There were younger, more energetic members of the team to take up slack. Besides, he had a company to run on his off-time.

As this was a hostage situation in South Carolina (school bus full of kids. Definitely serious business, but not the type that Captain America and Friends couldn't handle) Tony elected to stay behind and monitor remotely.

He was watching Cap take out a villain when the electricity suddenly went out, plunging the entire building into darkness.

That should have been impossible. The building itself wasn't hooked up to the electric grid. It was fed by Tony's arc-reactor technology.

"FRIDAY?" he demanded, and got silence.

Then, it was as if an electric current went up his spine. He _knew_ , several floors away, that Bucky, his Omega, his mate, was fighting for his life.

The time it took Tony to sprint to his workshop seemed like eternity, the pause to open each previously locked door, a lifetime of precious seconds. Tony's breath felt frozen in his throat. The primal call of one mate to another thumped in time with every beat of his heart: Bucky needed him, now, now, now...

Finally, FINALLY, Tony slapped the manual release over the holding container of the waiting Iron Man suit. The glass lifted, the armor parted, and he stepped in.

Bucky was three floors up, on the east side, Tony knew. It was the iron filings and the magnet pull again, only so much worse.

He had to be by Bucky’s side. Yesterday.

Lifting his palms, he blasted his repulsors to the outside window. He flew out and up several stories, then jerked to the right. No time to fire. He crashed through the bulletproof windows.

Bucky had retreated to the nursery, or maybe he'd been there when the power had been cut. In any case, two men held him knelt on the ground. A third man stood before him, a red notebook in hand. No less than ten others raised their guns to point at Tony.

Red haze bled into Tony's vision.

 

 

****

 

 

"... No one's going to hurt him," Steve said, as if from far away. "We're all friends here... We just need to check he's okay. Tony... do you hear me? I'm coming closer. Don't shoot. It's me."

Steve’s hands were out to either side, palms open and empty. He'd shed the top half of his uniform and shield, revealing the white t-shirt he wore underneath. He’d divested himself of anything that might look remotely like a weapon, and kept his head lowered submissively -- well. At least as submissive as an Alpha could be.

Tony blinked and slowly lowered his gauntleted hands. "Steve?"

A smile bloomed across the other Alpha's face. "There you are, pal."

For a moment, Tony didn't understand. It felt like he were waking up from a dream.

His mind replayed backwards: He was standing in front of his workshop -- no, he was _barring entry_ to his workshop. Bucky was in there. Locked in by Tony’s command.

He'd flown Bucky out of the destroyed nursery and placed him in there after Tony had killed his attackers. Every last one of them.

"How's Bucky?" Steve asked. "Is he safe?"

Tony flipped up the face plate and took a breath of clean, fresh air. Now that the threat was gone, he was feeling shaky and winded, a delayed adrenaline crash on the horizon.

"Yeah. He’s great. They tried--" he couldn't finish, but luckily Steve didn't seem to need an explanation.

Turning, Tony disengaged the security lockouts that had kept the workshop sealed.

Bucky was inside, whole and unbloodied. He sat calmly at one of the workbenches, a deck of cards spread out in a game of solitaire.

"Don't bother talking to me," he said, not looking up. "I can't hear a damn thing."

"Why not?" Steve demanded. He looked to Tony. “Does he need a doctor?”

Tony held up a hand. "I got it. It's okay." He picked up a localized EMP probe and waved it by Bucky's left ear, then his right to power-down both devices.

Bucky set down his hand of cards and looked up at him, quirking a smile that made Tony's heart stutter. "Worked like a charm."

Still shaky, Tony closed the distance and kissed him, wanting, _needing_ to know Bucky was safe. Still here. Still his.

And Bucky, to his surprise, returned it with gusto. A small noise escaped his throat, and his metal arm wrapped around Tony's armored middle with enough strength to dent the metal.

Somewhere in the background, Steve made an awkward cough. "I'll just... let the others know you two are okay." He hurried out.

"They wanted her," Bucky whispered, when they'd parted. "I knew you were coming for me -- could feel your anger right through me. I was scared, but your earpieces worked a treat, and I knew you were coming."

Tony let out a shuttering breath. "Is this good? Is it enough to convince you? You're safe. No matter what, I'll keep you safe." He was on the verge of babbling, but he didn't care. "We're bonded -- I don't know why or how--"

"Oh thank God," Bucky muttered, ducking his head against Tony’s neck. "I'm not the only one who’s been feeling it."

"--But _stay_. Don't leave." One still gauntleted hand went to Bucky's middle, pressing possessively. "Don't leave us."

Bucky hugged him close. "As long as you'll have me."

_Forever then_ , Tony thought.

He kissed the spot at the juncture of Bucky's neck where his mark ought to be. Bucky shivered under him, and his flesh hand snaked into the hair at the back of Tony's head to press him closer.

"Please," Bucky said. "Do it."

This wasn't how it was normally done. First came love, then heat and marking, and finally the bond. They'd done everything out of order, but… in its own way, that was them all over, wasn’t it?

His teeth sank into Bucky's flesh. Bucky made a strangled moan, tilting his head to the side in total submission. Their fingers tangled together over the swell of Bucky's stomach as Tony lapped at the blood, pressing his scent in.

 “You an’ me, against the world,” Bucky murmured as if he read Tony’s mind.

_Always_.

 

****

Epilogue

****

 

 

The first time Tony held his daughter, he was terrified he was going to drop her. In the back of his mind he suspected all new parents were like that. Alphas were supposed to be strong and sure, but little Winifred Maria Stark was so very small and delicate.

"You're fine," Bucky croaked, having either sensed Tony's emotions through the mating bond, or just read the expression on his face. He lay propped against a mountain of pillows in their bed, sheets freshly laundered, looking exhausted but proud.

Labor had been a challenge for them both. Bucky had insisted on no advanced medical intervention unless the baby's life was at stake -- even the support of his Alpha hadn't quashed old fears. Luckily, he and Winnie were strong. The labor had been intense, but normal. He’d borne her in the very room he and Tony had made love after their bond.

"She has your eyes," Tony murmured, one hip on the bed and shifting so Bucky could look at his daughter again.

Bucky smiled. "And your mouth."

" _A_ mouth," Tony corrected. "We won't know if you have the Stark mouth until you start talking, isn't that right sweetheart?"

Winnie closed her blue-gray eyes, having had a full day of being born.

From the corner of his eye, Tony caught Bucky's pensive expression. "What? Are you uncomfortable? Need more ice chips?" He wasn't sure how he was going to do that with a baby in his arms -- because he was unwilling to let her go now he had her, but he was sure he'd manage.

"No." Bucky glanced down and pinched a little of the blanket between thumb and forefinger. "It's stupid."

"Doubtful," Tony said. "Spill."

"It's just... how she came to be wasn't exactly... I never wanted…" he trailed off, looking for the word, but failing. A dark shadow flittered behind his eyes before his lips firmed. He looked up at Tony again, "But I'm glad I have her, and you."

For once, Tony was at a loss of what to say. Instead he leaned over and kissed Bucky on the forehead.

They sat together for a long time, gazing down at their daughter.

 

 

 

 ~ Fin ~


End file.
